EXPRESS
Well-Known Member
I am not new to LR shooting, but have become serious about it in say, the last five years.
In 2008 I had two custom rifles built by the best LR smith in the country, one in 6.5-284 the other .300win. Before that I refined a lot of my shooting and reloading mostly with a 6PPC and some hunting rifles and recently I purchased a Blaser R8 Success model with a 6.5x55 barrel and a .338 win mag barrel.
All of these rifle consistently shoot MOA or better at 100.
Now, of all these rifles, the 6PPC excused, only one is truly consistent at LR. The 6.5-284 (the one I've used most) has shot .5MOA groups at 1000 yards, however, sometimes I will get it out and put a shot on my "home" target, which is a sheet of 80x80cm steel at 600 yards, which I can shoot from my house. Some days it will miss the target entirely, then next shot hit. Then it might print a half decent group. Same thing for the .338 win mag. So, I'll get the .300 win out, and print a reliable .5MOA group at predicted POI given whatever wind/meteo conditions I compensate for, if needed.
When friends are over I get that .300 out and have their wives and kids shoot MOA and better groups on the same target, it's just that easy and reliable. It's not fussy about the ammo either.
The standard advice is going to be check your scopes, bases, rings, action screws and the rest. Let's give me the benefit of the doubt that it's all snug, lock tited, and the action screws are even torque measured. Believe me, this has been frustrating me for a long time, so I've been through every variable I can think of.
So I've come to one conclusion with the 6.5-284, which began life as a Remington Ti in 7mm-08. With the factory barrel it wouldn't shoot MOA reliably. Then I got it trued and rebarreled in 7mm-08 by the abovementioned smith, and it didn't shoot any better. So I binned the 7mm-08 idea and went with a 6.5-284, which has good moments and bad days. I've come to suspect that the Ti action just doesn't want to shoot well, though I hear they are fairly sought after and considered accurate actions.
With the other rifles, I just can't put my finger on it. The Blaser barrels have only been tested with the CEB LZR bullets, which I conclude they simply don't like, but even those shoot well at short range then fall apart past 500 yards.
My shooting technique has become easy to apply and well defined over the years, and is basically sound, I just can't get why some of my rifles won't shoot consistently at long range, while notable one, is incredibly accurate and does whatever I expect it to.
In 2008 I had two custom rifles built by the best LR smith in the country, one in 6.5-284 the other .300win. Before that I refined a lot of my shooting and reloading mostly with a 6PPC and some hunting rifles and recently I purchased a Blaser R8 Success model with a 6.5x55 barrel and a .338 win mag barrel.
All of these rifle consistently shoot MOA or better at 100.
Now, of all these rifles, the 6PPC excused, only one is truly consistent at LR. The 6.5-284 (the one I've used most) has shot .5MOA groups at 1000 yards, however, sometimes I will get it out and put a shot on my "home" target, which is a sheet of 80x80cm steel at 600 yards, which I can shoot from my house. Some days it will miss the target entirely, then next shot hit. Then it might print a half decent group. Same thing for the .338 win mag. So, I'll get the .300 win out, and print a reliable .5MOA group at predicted POI given whatever wind/meteo conditions I compensate for, if needed.
When friends are over I get that .300 out and have their wives and kids shoot MOA and better groups on the same target, it's just that easy and reliable. It's not fussy about the ammo either.
The standard advice is going to be check your scopes, bases, rings, action screws and the rest. Let's give me the benefit of the doubt that it's all snug, lock tited, and the action screws are even torque measured. Believe me, this has been frustrating me for a long time, so I've been through every variable I can think of.
So I've come to one conclusion with the 6.5-284, which began life as a Remington Ti in 7mm-08. With the factory barrel it wouldn't shoot MOA reliably. Then I got it trued and rebarreled in 7mm-08 by the abovementioned smith, and it didn't shoot any better. So I binned the 7mm-08 idea and went with a 6.5-284, which has good moments and bad days. I've come to suspect that the Ti action just doesn't want to shoot well, though I hear they are fairly sought after and considered accurate actions.
With the other rifles, I just can't put my finger on it. The Blaser barrels have only been tested with the CEB LZR bullets, which I conclude they simply don't like, but even those shoot well at short range then fall apart past 500 yards.
My shooting technique has become easy to apply and well defined over the years, and is basically sound, I just can't get why some of my rifles won't shoot consistently at long range, while notable one, is incredibly accurate and does whatever I expect it to.